I clenched my jaw. “And what if I don’t want to be woken up so you can have your way with me?”

He pressed his face into my neck and I felt him smile against my skin. He kissed me and pulled back. “Why don’t I give you a preview of what I intend to do in order to wake you up.”

And then I was flat on my back again as Braden kissed his way down my body. Knowing how sensitive I was, he stopped at my br**sts, one hand playing with my nipple, his mouth sucking on the other. I sighed, lighting up for him, the fight totally forgotten. Already I was growing wet for him again, my h*ps restless. And he knew that too. Lifting his head from my br**sts, he kissed between them and followed an invisible line down my torso, dipping his tongue in my navel, and moving further down, his lips skipping across the soft, quivering skin of my lower belly.

He pushed my thighs apart and then his mouth was on me.

I whimpered as his tongue licked inside me, playing with my c.l.i.t. I was panting by the time his fingers joined in. My hands glided through his hair, tightening, urging him closer as he masterfully spurred on my cl**ax, licking and finger-f.u.c.king me into a frenzy.

“Braden,” I moaned when he withdrew his fingers. I was so close. So G.o.dd.a.m.n close…

And then he was thrusting them back inside, in and out, in and out, his tongue working its magic on my c.l.i.t.

“Braden!” I exploded against him as he rung every inch of that o.r.g.a.s.m out of me. My body shuddered with more spasms as he crawled back up beside me.

Okay, that one had been just as ‘out of this world amazing’ as the last one he’d given me.

I lay there panting, staring at the ceiling in dazed wonder until Braden appeared above me again. He didn’t say a word but when he leaned down and kissed me, letting me taste myself as he flicked his tongue against mine, I felt like the depth of that kiss was saying it all for him.

He’d made his point.

My useless limbs didn’t protest when I found myself in his arms again.

Spooning.

“Night, babe,” his voice rumbled in my ear.

“Night,” I mumbled, my eyes fluttering closed.

Then it was lights out.

~13~

I was lying, staring at my ceiling, feeling the twinge between my legs and the ache in my muscles when I moved.

I’d had the best s.e.x of my life last night.

With Braden Carmichael.

And then we’d spooned. I frowned at that, my head turning on the pillow to eye the empty spot beside me on the mattress. I didn’t like the idea of spooning being part of the deal, but since it came with added benefits, I was going to swallow my discomfort and deal with it. Especially since Braden had done the right thing and left without waking me.

That screamed, ‘just s.e.x!’

This could work. I could do this.

The sound of a cupboard shutting in the kitchen drew me up out of bed, my heart picking up speed. Was Ellie home? And then my eyes fell to the end of the bed. Braden’s shirt. He’d picked it up off the floor. I checked my alarm clock. Eight o’ clock.

s.h.i.t. He was still here. What was he doing here? Didn’t he have work? Irritation niggled its way into my blood, and I could feel my cheeks getting hot as I hopped out of bed, digging out a tank top and pajama shorts. On the move, I twisted my hair into a messy ponytail and went to deal with him.

I stopped short at the kitchen doorway and felt that all too familiar squeeze of l.u.s.t. Standing pouring milk into two mugs of coffee, Braden was hot. He had pulled on his suit pants but was of course shirtless. The muscles in his broad shoulders moved as he did and I couldn’t help but remember how good they felt moving underneath my hands.

“Two sugars, right?” he asked before looking over his shoulder with a small smile.

That smile hit me in the chest like a punch. It was intimate. It was affectionate.

It hurt like h.e.l.l. My expression hardened. “What are you still doing here?”

“Making coffee.” He shrugged, adding the sugar and stirring.

“Don’t you have work?”

“I have a meeting in a few hours. I have time for coffee.” He smiled again as he crossed the kitchen to hand me my drink, my hand wrapping around the hot mug just as his mouth came down on mine. Addicted to the taste of him, I kissed him back. It wasn’t a long kiss. Short but sweet. When he pulled back I was scowling.

Braden sighed and took a sip of his coffee before asking, “What now?”

“You’re still here.” I turned on my heel and headed into the sitting room, tucking my foot underneath me as I curled into the corner of the couch. Braden sank into the armchair and I tried not to ogle him. My scowl deepened. “And you’re shirtless.”

His mouth quirked up at the corner like he knew exactly what the sight of him half-naked did to me. “I need coffee before I can function, and since I was making coffee for myself I thought I’d make one for you.”

“Surely you can function enough without coffee to call a cab?”

“And we need to talk,” he added, as if I hadn’t said anything.

I groaned and took a big gulp of hot coffee. “About what?”

“About your shifts at the bar for one thing. I might need you to accompany me on weekend nights. Any way you can see about having your shifts changed?”

I answered with a saccharine smile.

Braden raised an eyebrow. “Is that a yes or a no?”

“That’s a big, fat h.e.l.l no. Braden, I’m not changing my schedule for you.” I shrugged. “Look, I’ll meet you halfway at best. If you have somewhere you want me to be and you give me plenty of notice, I’ll make a shift swap.”

He nodded. “Sounds good.”

“Is that it? Are we done?”

His eyes narrowed and I felt a sudden change in the air. Braden leaned forward and I leaned further back into the couch even though there was a coffee table between us. “Stop treating me like a one-night stand you can’t get rid of, Jocelyn. It’s getting on my last nerve.”

I was seriously confused. “You said this was just s.e.x.”

“I also said we were friends and you agreed. Are you this rude to all your friends?”

“Sometimes.” He gave me a warning look and I exhaled heavily. “Look, I just don’t want this to get complicated. Don’t you think spooning and then making me coffee in the morning is a little…”

“A little what?”

“Uch.” If he was going to be obtuse about it, I was giving up. “I don’t know.”

Braden put his mug down and stood up, coming towards me slowly. My eyes followed him half-warily, half-l.u.s.tily, my gaze trailing up his six-pack to his throat. I really wanted to kiss his throat. He sat down, close, his arm reaching along the back of the couch so I was caged in. “I’ve never done this before. I’ll bet that you haven’t either. So, let’s play it by ear. No rules. No preconceived ideas of how this should be. Let’s just do what feels natural.”

“You’re wrong,” I muttered. “I have done this before.”

To my surprise, I watched Braden’s expression change instantly from soft to hard. The look he gave me was unfathomable as the muscle in his jaw ticked. I felt like he was trying to bore inside me, but I couldn’t look away despite how uncomfortable it felt. “Done this before?” he asked softly.

I shrugged. “There was nothing in the deal about sharing our s.e.xual histories. Suffice to say I know what I’m talking about. And there is no spooning or coffee in the morning in these kinds of deals.”

“Done this before?” he repeated. “I thought you said you hadn’t had s.e.x in four years. That would make you eighteen the last time you had s.e.x.”

Oh, I saw where he was going with that. I narrowed my eyes. “So?”

“When I was eighteen, most of the girls I knew thought they were in love with whoever they were s.h.a.gging.”

“And?”

Braden shifted closer, trying to intimidate me. “So when have you done this before?”

“That’s none of your business.”

“f.u.c.king h.e.l.l, Jocelyn, can you not answer one personal question?”

Anger blazed through me. I knew it. I freaking knew it. “That’s it, we’re done. This was a complete mistake.” I moved to get up but found myself tackled back onto the couch, flat on my back with Braden lying over me. I stared up at him wide-eyed. “You are such a caveman!”

An all-too-familiar p.i.s.sed off Braden breathed dragon fire on me, his face inches from mine. “We’re not done. We’ve barely even started.”

I shimmied under him but that only concluded in him pressing his h*ps deeper into mine, and that only led to him hardening against me, and that only led to my skin flushing as my panties grew damp. s.h.i.t! “Braden, this isn’t going to work. I’m not your girlfriend. You said no touchy feely emotional c.r.a.p.”

He bowed his head, his shoulders shaking. He gazed down at me from under his long lashes, laughing incredulously. “You are not like other women.”

“No,” I answered honestly. “I’m not.” He shifted again, getting comfortable on top of me and I felt the brush of his hard c*ck teasing me between my legs, my thighs opening involuntarily. I bit my lip to stifle a gasp and Braden’s eyes flashed hungrily. “Stop it,” I breathed.

“Stop what?” he circled his h*ps again, rubbing against me and causing another spike of heat between my legs.

“Braden.” I pressed my hands against his chest. “Seriously.”

“We’re friends,” he whispered against my mouth. “Friends can ask questions. Now who did you let f**k you?”

Fine. If that’s what he wanted… “Quite a few guys. I don’t remember most of their names.”

He froze, pulling back to study me. I saw the tick in his jaw again. “What the h.e.l.l does that mean?”

Whoa! Was he angry? I glared at him, my defenses up. “I don’t do relationships, Braden. I told you that. But I like s.e.x and I used to like to party. Alcohol doesn’t make for a loving relationship.”